as in reasons
a false ground that you give to hide why you are really doing something
The leaders used a minor clash at the border as a pretext for war.
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Recent Examples of pretexts
Gaza showed how power brokers from the White House on down seem eager for pretexts to punish dissent in ways that create a chilling effect, and that the hottest rhetoric from activists can be exactly that pretext.
—
Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 11 Feb. 2026
Hamas says that Israel is creating pretexts to avoid honoring the agreement.
—Mohammed R. Mhawish, New Yorker, 29 Dec. 2025
Those killed under torture, or by starvation, or medical neglect, on the other hand, were transported first to military hospitals where pretexts were invented for the deaths.
—Robin Yassin-Kassab, Time, 17 Sep. 2025
Spencer Kornhaber, The Atlantic, 11 Feb. 2026
Hamas says that Israel is creating pretexts to avoid honoring the agreement.
—Mohammed R. Mhawish, New Yorker, 29 Dec. 2025
Those killed under torture, or by starvation, or medical neglect, on the other hand, were transported first to military hospitals where pretexts were invented for the deaths.
—Robin Yassin-Kassab, Time, 17 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for pretexts
Noun
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Of course, artists make choices in biographical shows for a whole variety of reasons, whether in service of the storytelling, to appease those who would prefer to remain anonymous or even self-protection.—
Chris Jones,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Apr. 2026
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One of the primary reasons that some car buyers avoid vehicles with electric powertrains is the lengthy duration of charging sessions.—
Charles Singh,
USA Today,
27 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Grove said the agency’s justifications for consolidating offices in Salt Lake City, Utah, don’t make sense.—
Karl Hille,
Baltimore Sun,
9 Apr. 2026
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The numbers and justifications don’t add up.—
Kristen Monsell,
Sun Sentinel,
7 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Authorities said the gun had been purchased under false pretenses in Indiana.—
Caroline Kubzansky,
Chicago Tribune,
27 Apr. 2026
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The 2025 Holocaust Expropriated Art Recovery Act, or HEAR Act, expands on a 2016 law, signed by President Barack Obama, that permits victims and descendants of victims of the Holocaust to lay legal claim to works of art looted by the Nazis or sold to the Nazis under false pretenses.—
Jackie Hajdenberg,
Sun Sentinel,
20 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Venus and Saturn make this full moon the right time to finally take a look at your figures without excuses.—
Glamour,
Glamour,
25 Apr. 2026
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Yet both Piker and Tolentino move from discussing nonlethal crimes of nuisance and destruction to making excuses for murder.—
Thomas Chatterton Williams,
The Atlantic,
23 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Pretexts.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/pretexts. Accessed 2 May. 2026.
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